1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of storage systems, particularly a retractable storage system for a confined space.
2. Description of Prior Art
In recent years various new kitchen appliances such as a microwave oven have become convenient and commonly used kitchen features. The dimensions of these new appliances do not always exactly match the existing available spaces in an older kitchen. This often leaves narrow unused openings after a new appliance is installed.
In a common design of a kitchen built during the last several decades a cooking range typically has above itself an exhaust fan with a hood incorporated between kitchen cabinets. Approximately 70% of the hoods are 30 inches wide. To save space in the kitchen, different manufacturers like General Electric, Litton, Quasar and others came up with a design which combines a microwave oven and an exhaust fan. This type of a microwave oven, which is often called an over-the-range microwave oven, replaces the exhaust fan-hood combination in the designated space over the cooking range. Because the majority of kitchen cabinet designs have the above mentioned space equal to 30 inches, manufacturers accepted a standard of 30 inches for the width of the over-the-range microwave ovens.
Most of the remaining kitchen designs have the width of the space for the exhaust fan-hood equal to 36 inches and sometimes to 42 inches. When the over-the-range microwave oven replaces a 36 inches wide exhaust fan-hood, there are two 3 inches wide open spaces one on each side of the microwave oven between the oven and the cabinets and, if the exhaust fan-hood was 42 inches wide, the above mentioned open spaces are each 6 inches wide. The open spaces differ in height as well, depending on a style of the kitchen cabinets. These open spaces ruin the aesthetic appearance of a kitchen.
To solve this problem a carpenter is sometimes asked to close the openings with wood panels to match the interior of the kitchen. In this case the enclosed space is lost completely for any practical use.
General Electric and Bolister Products, Inc. of Los Alamitos, Calif. offer a filler kit to fill the above mentioned spaces. This kit can be either used to only block and close the opening between the over-the-range microwave oven and kitchen cabinets or to make a very narrow shelf in the opening. Because the shelf is very narrow and fixed, it is not practical to use and hard to clean. It is a reason that, in most instances, the filler kit is only used to close the opening.
Another disadvantage of the above mentioned filler kits is a problem with matching colors. General Electric offers the filler kits only in black. But the over-the-range microwave ovens are manufactured in black, white, almond and several shades of brown. It is obvious that usage of GE black filler kits is restricted by color choice. Bolister Products, Inc. offers a better variety of colors but the color has to be specified for the whole filler kit. It makes manufacturing and inventory control costlier.
Another disadvantage of the filler kits is the problem of closing openings of different heights. General Electric offers filler kits of only one height. Any deviation from this height creates a problem when using GE filler kits. Bolister Products, Inc. offers a better selection of filler kits with 3 different specified heights but still does not answer the needs of all possible variations. This again makes manufacturing and inventory control significantly more expensive.